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 “Entombment” An anonymous, undated work that refers to the tradition of 17th and 18th century painting – both in terms of form and composition. |
 Fragment of a Coptic fabric (“orbiculus”) Textile executed in tapestry weave and “flying-shuttle” technique. This element originates from Coptic tunic. The preserved fragment inside an aorbiculus is covered with decoration of the Flechtknoten type. |
 Fragment of a Coptic fabric The fragment of a Coptic fabric was purchased in Cairo by soldiers of the Polish Independent Carpathian Rifle Brigade during WW II and subsequently granted to the Archaeological Museum. It is a fragment of a linen fabric with two vertically sewn straps of different widths. |
 Painting “Nero’s Torches” by Henryk Siemiradzki Nero’s Torches by Henryk Siemiradzki, also called Candlesticks of Christianity, initiated the collection of the National Museum in Kraków. On the painting, the artist immortalised one of the most tragic moments in the history of Christianity, which was the burning of alleged perpetrators of the fire which broke out in Rome during the reign of Nero in 64 AD, described by Suetonius and Tacitus. |
 Chapel entitled “Simon of Cyrene Helps Jesus Carry the Cross” This shrine comes from Łącko; it was donated to the Museum in 1959. It represents a type of a columnar shrine with a wooden box mounted on a debarked trunk. |
 Stela with four figures from Kom Abu Billou A “family” stela showing a married couple (?) and two children in prayerful attitudes, one above their feet and the other opposite them. The adults, who are missing the upper bodies and heads, are depicted on a coach with mattress, one in front of the other, supporting themselves each on the left elbow resting on two pillows. Compositions with several figures are rare on stelae from Kom Abu Billou. |
 Funerary stela pediment The dove, a symbol of the Holy Spirit, is popular in Christian iconography. The motif is frequent in Coptic art, mainly on funerary stelae presenting the same kind of composition as above. A praying figure with two crosses or a stylized crux gemmata cross is usually shown between the columns. The motif of a dove is also known from wall painting; numerous representations of doves are known from murals in the hermitages at Esna in Upper Egypt and elsewhere. |
 Stela of Bes from Kom Abu Billou The stela with deceased shown in prayer in the inly such example among the objects from Kom Abou Billou in Polish collections. The style of a stela, dated to 300 based on the archeological context, is similar, although not exactly the same. Modeling of the details of the figure and of the dress suggests an earlier dating for this object. |
 Stela of man from Kom Abou Billou On the preserved bottom half of the relief the deceased is shown reclining on a kline with mattress, supported on two pillows. He is dressed in a chiton and himation, with right leg in profile, left shown frontally. The funerary repast is suggested by two sheaves of corn and an amphora in between, next to which stands a three-legged table with horizontal bar. |
 “Saint George slaying the dragon” – a plaster cast of a medieval sculpture The bronze original is located in the National Gallery in Prague. Once, it was in the third courtyard of the Prague Castle, where a bronze copy is now located. The original was probably created in 1373 and was funded by the Bohemian King and Roman Emperor Charles IV of Luxembourg, who was at the peak of his power at the time. |
Did you know that In Veit Stoss’s Gethsemane The depiction of Christ in Gethsemane appeared three times in the works currently attributed to Veit Stoss. The theme itself is one of the scenes in the iconography of the Passion. It was widely used in the 2nd half of the 15th century in the art of South Germany. This event was described in the gospels of St. Matthew, St. Mark, and St. Luke. Christ is shown praying in Gethsemane (the olive garden) at the foot of the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem, accompanied by three sleeping apostles: St. John, St. Peter, and St. James. |
Did you know that Baptismal fonts in Poland Baptismal fonts belonged to the most important elements of church accessories. That is why their history dates back to the beginning of Christianity on Polish land. The oldest Romanesque fonts survived in the greatest numbers within the territory of the former State of the Teutonic Order as well as in Silesia as those lands were... |
Did you know that Resurrection in medieval art Christ’s resurrection is a key event for Christians, while Easter is the most important celebration of the liturgical year. Interestingly, the image of Christ emerging from the grave only appeared in European art at the end of the 12th century. Earlier, the mystery of the Resurrection was hidden in other depictions, such as the Descent into the Abyss, Three Marys at the grave, or Noli me tangere. Sometimes, it also happened that all these themes appeared in a single work of art (an example of which is the Altar of the Basilica in Kraków by Veit Stoss), complementing each other and telling the whole story of the Resurrection. |
 Wael Shawky, “Digital Church” In the film Digital Church Wael Shawky tries to connect two worlds, the Christian and the Islamic, by staging the surah devoted to the life of Mary, mother of Jesus, recorded in the holy book of Muslims, in the space of the Catholic church. The artist uses the sung recitation of verses, which is traditional for the Islamic world, using the Arabic language, until recently recognized as the only language in which the text of the Quran has a prayer value. Although the recited surah refers to events well-known to Christian believers, the form of its conveyance is strange and confusing to them, and may even – due to the choice of the place of recitation – be perceived as blasphemous. |
 Baptismal font A baptismal font of a goblet shaped with a dodecagon base, with a pyramidal bowl and a foot. The narrowing in the middle bears a band (a so-called node) which is covered by a net ornament with three coats of arms (one of which is now missing). The bowl of the baptismal font is covered by a bas-relief decoration, the fields of which are separated by tracery. |
Did you know that Sapphire – on the secret language of stones For centuries, precious stones have been desired not only because of their beauty. It was believed that, if properly selected, they could cure a variety of ailments and diseases. Some of them became direct components of healing potions. Powdered pearls, which were believed to be created from God’s tears... |
 Stela of man from Kom Abou Billou Banquet scene inside an aedicula consisting of two flat columns supporting a semicircular pediment, now lost. A papyrus capital is still visible on the column to the right. The deceased is depicted as a partaker in a banquet, reclining on a couch with two pillows and mattress. Horizontal engraved lines below the representation were intended for an inscription. |
 Stele of the son of Chairemon and Isidora from Kom Abou Billou The stele was purchased in Cairo at Eli Albert and Joseph Abermayor by soldiers of the Polish Independent Carpathian Rifle Brigade during WW II. The scene depicts a deceased man lying on a klinai and a female orant standing opposite. The man lying in the bed is dressed in a short-sleeved chiton and a himation rolled at the waist, wrapped around his left hand. In his right, outstretched hand he is holding a kantharos. The woman standing in front of him is depicted en face, she is dressed in the same way as the man and is raising her hands in a gesture of prayer. Under the scene an inscription is placed. The name of the deceased has been preserved only partially; perhaps it was Sosas. The name of his father was Chairemon; the name of Isidora is also there, popular in Egypt in the Roman period. The figures are bound together by family ties. |
 Tomb stele from Ginari Tafah The sculpture was purchased in Cairo by soldiers of the Polish Independent Carpathian Rifle Brigade during WW II. The stele comes from the Christian site in Lower Nubia (present day Egypt) in Ginari Tafah. The tombstone is topped with an imitation of a conch. Traces of dark red paint on the tombstone indicate that it must have been painted originally. The epitaph begins with the formula declaring the death of the person called Elisabeth. |
Did you know that Nativity scene – satirical scene The Nativity scene, which, over time, started to adopt the form of a theatrical show, was accompanied by dialogues and singing. It was expanded by proscenium. People hidden under its floor animated the dolls, which bowed their heads to the Infant Jesus. The use of this quasi-theatrical formula during the holiday celebration was supposed to enrich the message, which, from the form of simply reading the text of the Holy Bible — most often during the liturgy — was transformed into presenting the events from the life of Christ before the audience of his followers. However, the Christmas pageant gradually started to laicize: there were more people taking part in the drama, and many scenes of secular nature were introduced. On the basis of the religious content, entertaining episodes (comedy). |
